Display rack or stand.



NITEI) STATES i PATENT OFFIOE.

DISPLAY RACK on STAND.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented J an. 2, 1906.

Application filed March 10, 1904. Renewed J une 5, 1905. Serial No. 263,869.

To @ZZ whom, t may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY M. WILLIS, a citizen of the United States, residing in East Williston, Nassau county, and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Display Racks or Stands, of which the followin is a description.

My invention re ates to display racks or stands, and particularly to the type known as collapsible stands or racks.

An object of my invention is to provide a display rack or stand which will be cheap of production, simple'in structure, capable of rapid manufacture, and susceptible of being packed in small compass.

Another object of my invention is to provide a display rack or stand which will be sufficiently ornamental to be placed on any show stand or case in any store and yet will be cheap to manufacture, thus rendering it adaptable for advertising purposes. With the above objects in view my invention consists in the parts, features, and combinations of elements hereinafter described and claimed.

In the drawings forming part .of this description, Figure 1 is a top plan view of my display-rack. Fig. 2 is a front elevation. Fig. 3 is a horizontal section taken on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a transverse section taken on the line 4 4 of Fig. 1, and Fig. 5 is anl end elevation showing the rack collapsed or folded ready for packing and transportation.

The rack consists of the back 1, the bottom 2 hinged thereto, the top 3, hinged to the back, and the front 4, hinged to the top and bottom. The ends are preferably left open for lightness and simplicity. The bottom and front are preferably solid, but may be i'iligreed or otherwise ornamented. The top may be perforated or provided with openings 5 of anyA suitable shape for the reception of bottles, boxes, vials, or other holders for medicines, perfumes, &c. The rack or stand thus far described is collapsible, the hinges 6 being so formed as to allow the parts to fold, as shown in Fig. 5; but if the hinges are made sufciently tight friction would hold the parts in open position. (Shown-in Figs. 1, 2, and 4.)

The back 1 has hinged to it two rectangular leaves or supports 7 and 8, one hinged near one end or side of the rack 1 and the other hinged near the other end or side of the rack. These two supports are hin ed at 10, so as to swing within the body o the rack and extend transversely across the same and support the rack in the open or display condition. (Shown in Figs. l, 2, and 4.) The supports are sufliciently long and wide to extend from rear to approximately the front of the rack and from top to bottom of the same. Thus when the sup orts are open the rack will be rigidly held 1n display condition and prevented from collapsing. When the leaves are closed, one overlaps tne other, and to enable the two to lie close together the one, 8, is slightly shouldered, offset, or recessed at 9 to receive the end of the other.

In order to set the rack in position for receiving any given article, it is only necessary to grasp the back thereof and lift it into vertical position, this action bringing the body portions into the position shown in Figs. 1,

2, and 4. Then the leaves are pushed with the finger until they assume a position directly across the rack. This prevents the rack from collapsing and makes the same strong and iirm and prevents pressure applied to the same from knocking it down or collapsing it.

Preferably my display-rack is to be made of aluminium or other light and comp aratively cheap metals but it willbe obvious thatprecious metals may be employed or stiff cardboard, wood, or any other materials which may be found suitable for the purpose.

The hinges are so made that the rack may be collapsed by either throwing the rack down upon its back or upon its face after the leaves have been removed to nesting position. Thus collapsed, as shown in Fig. 5, the rack may be packed and a great many of them crated in small compass for transportation.

Obviously various modifications may be made in the structure of my display-rack such, for example, as eliminatingone of the transverse leaves or supports, or the top of the rack for holding the articles to be dis layed may be divided into sections, or cells may be provided therein for receiving the articles-*this depending in great measure upon the character of articles or things to be displayed. Y

The extended back 1 may be ornamented in various ways, may be ligreed, and may have various 'advertising media painted or otherwise applied to it.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by-Letters Pat- 1. A display-rack consisting of four body IOO ITO

portions, means for loosely hinging said portions together to produce a rectangular rack and render them capable of being collapsed upon each other into flat form, and means carried by the rack for sustaining the same in display condition.

2. A collapsible display-rack consisting of a rectangular portion and an extended back, the top of the rectangular portion being provided with means for holding the articles to be displayed, and vmeans for supporting the rack in display condition.

3. A collapsible display-rack consisting of a back portion, a top and a bottom portion each hinged to the back portion, and a front portion hinged to the top and bottom portions, and means for sustaining the several hinged portions in iixed relation to each other.

4. A collapsible display-rack consisting of a plurality of hinged portions forming a substantially rectangular body portion with an extended back, and a'support hinged so as to swing within the body portion and support the rack in display condition.

5. A display-rack comprising a plurality of body portions, means for loosely hinging said portions together to render them capable of being collapsed upon each other into flat form, and means carried by one of said hinged portions for sustaining `the rack in display condition.

6. A display-rack comprising a plurality of body portions, means ior loosely hinging said portions together to render them capable of being collapsed upon each other into l'lat form, and a support hinged to one of said portions for sustaining the rack in display condition.

n 7. A collapsible display-rack comprising a plurality of body portions loosely hinged together and one of said portions being extended to form a back, and means for sustaining the rack in display condition.

8. A collapsible display-rack comprising a plurality of body portions hinged together and one of said portions being extended to form a back, and one of the said portions being provided with a hinged support for sustaining the rack in display condition.

9. A display-rack consisting of a plurality of individual body portions loosely hinged together vto render them capable of being collapsed upon each other into flat form, and means for sustaining the parts in display condition.

10. A display-rack comprising a plurality of individualbodyportions, means forloosely hinging said arts together to render them capable of being collapsed upon each other into flat form in either of two directions, and means for sustaining the rack in display condition.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto signed my name in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

HENRY M. WILLIS.

Witnesses:

CHAs. MCC. CHAPMAN, M. I-IERsKoVITZ. 

